Counting down until end of finals week

As of Monday, Apr 18, 2016, I have 10 days of classes left, 5 days of work at the school, 4 papers to write, 2 oral presentations (this week), and 27 days until I fly back to Atlanta. 

Free taro ice cream from Grand Ole Creamery!

For the past two weeks, there were two Spring Sampler visits for Prospective First-years (PFs) to see Macalester. Being a host myself for both samplers, I managed to snag free ice cream from Mac's Admissions office and many other benefits :D I also made a new friend with one of my PFs that I hosted; she's planning on coming to Macalester, and I attempted to convince her to join Bonner next school year. 

Last Friday was the last gathering of the Alumni and Student of Color Connect program. The program funded a trip to the Midtown Global Market, where Jennifer and I had previously visited for dinner last semester. With my $10 gift certificate from the program, I looked at all the food options to maximize my free meal. After looking at the menu of an Indian restaurant, I decided to go with their Lamb rice bowl, which was $9.99 before taxes. Suddenly, Jennifer grabbed my arm and pointed at a line of small text at the bottom of the large menu sign: "$1 off your order when you show your best Bollywood move." Being a broke college student, I wasn't going to pass up this precious opportunity. Luckily, I did the APA flashmob not too long ago and still remembered the Bollywood dances. Let's just say that the cashier was very amused and I managed to get my meal under $10 (with change back!). 

The facilitators of this program are among my favorite people at Macalester. One of the facilitators, Daymond (who works at the Alumni Office- also an alum himself), hinted at a possibility of his treating ice cream to those who walk back to campus with him. Needless to say, I ate a ton of ice cream the past 7 days. Cue picture below: 

I got a small hot fudge sundae!

On another note, the weather in Saint Paul has been super warm. I know I mentioned warm weather in my last post, but due to atmospheric pressure (thanks, Weather Channel), Saint Paul experienced sunny 80 degree weather the past few days. I even had the chance to wear shorts outside for the first time in months! One thing's for sure, the temperatures are not going to drop below 30 until next winter! 

Academically, I'm still holding myself together. I'm being hit with three research papers (each one being 10 pages) for finals, so that has been super stressful for me. It's the hardest in the planning/researching stages, you can never accurately estimate the amount of time needed to finish! I managed to extend the deadline for one paper (thank goodness!) so that I get the weekend to finish and perfect it. I know that I can finish the year strong as long as I progress forward steadily and stop wasting time. While some procrastination and breaks are good, too much will result in my lack of sleep. 

One thing that's surprising is that I'm always tired. Despite the college student myths, I actually manage to sleep an average of 7.5 to 8.5 hours each night (way more than what I hear others get- I function best when I get 8+ hours). However, I think I consistently feel drained due to my brain being on overdrive constantly. Recently, I have been trying to change my diet slightly so that I feel more energized- drinking more green tea, eating more fruits, and sleeping at more regular hours. Hopefully, it'll help me feel a bit better. 

Anyway, it is midnight in Saint Paul now; off to bed! Let's face tomorrow with renewed energy!

Good night,
​Rachel